Automatic test equipment for testing standard format video devices is known. It is commonly required to evaluate the performance and functionality of a video unit under test (UUT) to determine if the UUT is operating within the manufacturer's specifications, and/or within other desired specifications. Certain UUTs may require non-standard or special image/formats.
SDI is a family of digital video interfaces first standardized by SMPTE (The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) in the late 1980s. SDI video signals can be generated by a wide variety of single purpose instruments employing diverse methods. In most available types, the image format and timing are limited to a common set of known standards that primarily support commercial display devices. Similarly, single purpose instruments are available for the acquisition of SDI video signals. Newer UUTs may implement a plurality of digital formats that operate concurrently, necessitating test equipment that supports coherent HDMI, DVI and/or SDI video signals and/or legacy analog video signals. Other UUT applications may be sensitive to latency introduced by external adapters used to translate between different standards resulting in excess jitter or dropout.
Inventions disclosed herein implement a novel adaptation to permit user definable scan/image formats for testing not only SDI video based devices but other complex analog/digital variants as well.